The retired basketball player, speaking to The Wall Street Journal’s Evelyn Rusli, said his constant search to find the next cool thing in technology brings him in contact with new companies all the time.

In his quest to be the first to have a new technology, for example, O’Neal said he called Steve Jobs before the first iPhone release to see if he could get the new phone early. (Jobs said no.)

These days, he searches the app store, buying deer-hunting games.

“I probably spend $1,000 on apps a week,” he said.

For more on his social-media strategy, what he looks for in tech companies, and the types of apps he buys, watch the full interview.